End construction for cars



Dec. 1, 1925. 1.563.835

J. W. COLEMAN END CONSTRUCTION FOR CARS Filed Nov. 2'7, 1923 2 Sheets-Shea; 1

/' /6. 2 lnrenfor James 11 Ca/cman Dec. 1, 1925. 0 1,563,835

J. W. COLEMAN END CONSTRUCTION FOR CARS Filed Nov. 27, 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 F/cs; 4

James m Ca/emaq Patented Dec. 1, 1925.

UNITED STATES JAMES W. COLEMAN, OF MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA.

END CONSTRUCTION FOR CABS.

Application filed November 27, 1923. Serial No. 677,266.

To all whom it maqz comer n:

Be it known that I, JAMES W. COLEMAN, a

citizen of the United States of America, and resident of the city of Montreal, in the Province of Quebec and Dominion of Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in End Construction for Cars, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to improvements in car end construction, and the primary object of the invention is toprovide an end construction that will be proof against bulging due to end thrust of a load within the car.

A further object is the provision of end construction applicable equally to cars in course of building or as a repair to existing cars of either outside metal or wood frame construction.

A still further object is to provide a trussed end construction adapted to utilize the entire distance between the inner and outer surfaces of the end for truss depth, thereby ensuring requisite strength and stiffness without undue weight of material.

Another object is to provide a trussed end construction or end reinforcement of maximum depth which will not encroach on the internal dimensions of the car nor produce undesirable projections from the inner surface of the end.

Another object is the provision of a com posite end construction in which stiffening members combine with planking to produce a complete end closure.

Still another object is the provision of an end construction of moderate cost and durable character which may be easily applied either in the construction of new cars or as a repair with great ease and rapidity.

An additional object is the provision of a trussed end construction in which compression and tension ,members are formed integral and are, therefore, permanently in properrelation and without possibility of slackening which would impair the efficiency of the truss.

Various other objects and advantages may embodiment of the invention and without 7 confining the invention to any detail or com.-

bination of details i Fig. 1 is an elevation of the improved end construction from the floor line upward to nearly the roof.

Fig. 2 is a cross section on the line 2 2 of Figure 1 on an enlarged scale.

Fig. 3 is a partial vertical section at the center, on the scale of Figure 2. a

Fig; 4 is a view similar to Figure 2 show- A tween these uprights is occupied by alternately arranged compression members 13 and tension members 14 in any desired spacing, the compression members being arranged inwardly of the uprights and the tension members outwardly of the intermediate uprights and inwardly of the corner,

uprights. In rear of the tension members and inwardly of the uprights the spaces between the compression members are filled in by planking 15 or other suitable sheathing which combines with the compression members to form a complete end closure. The compression and tension members, are, according to this invention, formed integral from a single sheet of metal by suitably upsettng and shearing the same to separate the members through the greater part of their length while leaving them integrally connected adjacent the ends. The sheet may be of any suitable size, that is to say, a single sheet may suflice to form the entire truss construction ofthe car end in one piece orany suitable number of sheets may be employed. The latter condition has been. illustrated in Figure 1 in which three sheets are illus trated, the lines of joint'ure between them being designated 16. The intermediateuprights 12 are interposed between thecompression and tension members and. serve as queen tion.

posts or struts of the truss construd:

sembled and tapering from this central portion toward the ends, as. clearly shown. in Figure 5. The tapering of the sides is preferably effected all in the innermost edge, thus leaving the outer edge, which is. presented to the uprights, straight. The sides are connected by an integral web 18 disposed at. the inner or inclined edges, with the result that this web is. cambered or arched inwardly. Between adjacent -compression members the plate is sheared 1n 1ts central 'part in two preferably parallel lines located a. short distance from the-compression membersidesso as to form. outwardly I turned flanges 1-9 at the sides of the compression member,.which flanges: provide adequate bearing surface for engagement with the intermediate uprights- The strip of metal thus partially severed from the plate between each. pair of compression members.

forms. a tension member, and this; strip of metal is pressed in. its, centralipart outwardly of the. line of the plate, that is to say, on the opposite side of'the plate to the compres: sion members. Each; tension member presents preferably a, central portion, disposedin. a plane parallel with that off the plate and having a length substantially equal to the distance between the outermost edges of the uprights 12 with which the plate is to be assembled. The end portions of. the tension members slope from this central portion to the plane of the, plate. In the pressing. of

theplate to produce the compression and v tension members, inwardly extending flanges plane of the plate. The channels of the.

. entire distance between, these flanges as.

20 are formed at the vertical edges of. the plate disposed preferably-y normal to the compression members preferably extend the shown, but the shearing to separate the compression and tension members preferably.

stops some distance from the flanges, the distanflebeing preferably that equal to the leg length of the corner angle, so that when the plate is in position the edges of the angleswill be located at or slightly inside the ends of the cutsin-ordert'o support. the tension members andzhold" the plate against tearing at the ends of the cuts.

A single plate, or any suitable number of plates thus formed, are assembled with the uprights, as already 'described,,the intermediate uprights passing tightly between the compression and tension members to complete the truss construction and properly tension the members. It will be observed that the compression members are disposed concave sides out. The depth of these members over the webs and flanges is equal to the thickness of the end sheathing and therefore when the sheathing is in place be tween the members the inner surface is smooth and unbroken by any projections. Sl'ight'depressions are, however, formed adj'acent the sides of the car between the zones orband's of sheathing, due to the camber of the compression members. These depressions are not objectionable providing the edges of the sheathing are chamfered as shown at 21, Figure 3, to avoid lodgment of material such as grain and also splintering. The edges of the sheathing arerabbeted at 22 to receive the flanges 19 of the compression members and are supported between the uprights, against outward pressure, by the flanges, so that the load on the sheathing is transmitted directly to the transverse trusses; The stiffeners are secured in place by bolts or the like 23 passing through the feet 20 and side legs of the corner uprights. In this way the sides of the car are tied together. The bolts may be the ordinary attaching bolts of the side sheathing or may be specially provided bolts.

In climates where exposure of metal on the inside of the car is undesirable on account of sweating or'frosting, thin supplementary sheathing 24 may be provided internally'or externally, or both.

hen the car end issubjected to load. as by the shifting of the contents due to inertia in stopping or starting the car, the pressure ispartly sustained directly by the compression members and the remainderof the pres.- sure' which. is against the sheathing is transmitted by the sheathing to the compression members. These members being arched or cambered' tendto straighten out with consequent elongation, which tendency is resisted. by the tension members in the well known manner. Owing to the continuity'of the intermediate uprights through the. entire truss construct-ion,pressure localized at. any level is distributed through the uprights to all. tension members and to the corner uprights. The outward thrust against the. end structure is transmitted through the corner u'prights to the side framesv ofthe car and at the same time the transverse truss construc tion positively ties the sides together against separation laterally from the ends The formation and disposition. of'the truss construction with the compression members thereof occupying the thickness of the end sheathing enables the entire space between the inner and outer surfaces of the end to be utilized. As the strength of the structure varies as the squared. its depth, it will be readilyseen that by utilizingthe thickness of the end sheathing in addition tothe available space outside the end of. the truss construction may be .much stronger than would otherwise bepossible unless by employment of much greater-weight of metal.

While the structure has been described as of. integral formation it will be understood that the invention also contemplates the employment oi separately fori'ned compression and tension members connected, as by riveting or welding, to vertical end members constituting the feet 20. Furthermore, while the structure is primarily intended to form with the sheathing a complete car end, it will be understood that apart only of the end may be thus formed. hen the trussed end structure is applied as arepair to cars not having the intermediate uprights 12, for example a wood frame car, it will be necessary to provide the upright strut members 12. The compression and tension may also be disposed vertically and the members 12 horizontally.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. A car end comprising a series of integrally formed trusses, sheathing interposed between said trusses and forming with the trusses a complete end closure.

2. A car end comprising a series of con nected transverse trusses including spaced compression members, end sheathing between said members, the sheathing and members forming a complete end closure, and tension members alternated with the compression members and connected at their ends to the ends of the compression members.

3. A car end comprising a plate sheared transversely in its central portion to provide parallel members connected at their ends by vertical unsheared portions of the plate, alternate portions being formed as compression members and the remaining portions as tension members, and a strut disposed between the tension and compression members, and sheathing disposed between the compression members and in the plane thereof.

4. A car end comprising a plate flanged at its ends and sheared in transverse lines terminating inwardlv of the flanges, alternate portions of the plate between said shear lines being pressed to one side of the plane of the plate to form compression members and the remaining portions of the plate being pressed to the other side of the plane of the plate to form tension members, car end uprights passing between the compression and tension members and serving as truss struts and car end corner uprights connected to the plate flanges and overlying the unsheared end portions of the plate and holding the same against extension of the sheared lines by tearing when under load, and sheathing disposed between the compression members and in the plane thereof.

A car end comprising, in combination with corner and intermediate uprights and. sheathing disposed inwardly of said uprights, a trussed reinforcing member including a series ottransverse compression members arranged in spaced relation in the plane of the sheathing, and tension members disposed opposite the spaces between the com-- pression members and outwardly of the intermediate uprights and inwardly ot' the corner uprights, said tension members being connected. at their ends to the ends of adjoiningcompression members, the intermediate uprights serving as struts in the truss.

6. A car endincluding spaced transverse compression members and sheathing members alternated in a single plane, flanges 0n the compression members supporting the edges of the sheathing members and tension members disposed outwardly of the plane of the compression members, opposite the sheathing members and connected at their ends to the ends of adjoining compression members, and car end uprights interposed between the compression and tension members and serving as struts of the truss construction.

7. A car end including spaced transverse compression members, sheathing between the compression members and located in the same plane as the compression members, tension members alternated with the compression members and connected at their ends to the ends of adjoining compression members, said compression and tension members being cambered away from one another, and uprights disposed between the compression and tension members and tensioning all members to constitute a truss.

8. A device for use in car end construction comprising a plate flanged at opposite edges and sheared in spaced substantially parallel lines at right angles to the flanges to form a series of elongated portions separated at their side edges, alternate portions of the series being pressed to one side of the plane of the plate to present channel shaped members including flanged sides tapering toward theends and cambered webs connecting the sides, the remaining plate portions being pressed to the opposite side of the plane of the plate and including end portions inclining to the plane of the plate.

9. A structure for use in car end construction comprising compression and tension members alternately arranged, and members traversing the ends of compression and tension members and connecting them together, the central parts of said compression and tension members being disposed in spaced planes to permit insertion of a strutmember common to all the compression and tension members.

10. A structure according to claim 9, in

which the compression and tension and connecting members are formed integral from a single sheet of metal.

11. A car endcomprising a series of trusses, each including integrally formed compression and tension members, and sheathing interposed between said trusses and forming'with the trusses a complete end closure.

12. A car end comprising a series of trusses connected together at their ends, the compression and tension members of said trusses being arranged out of register whereby the compression and tension members are alternated in the plane of the car end and each' compression member co-operates with adjacent tension members on eachside thereof and each tension member co-operates with ad acent compression members on each side thereof, and sheathing interposed between compression and tension members are alter-' natedin the plane of the car end and each compression member co-operates with adjacent tension members on each side thereof and each tension member co-operates with adjacent compression members on each side thereof, and sheathing interposed between the compression members of said trusses forming therewith a complete end closure,

and strut members extendingat right angles to the trusses.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand.

JAMES WV. COLEMAN. 

